Liquid dispensing devices, such as thermal ink jet printers, may be utilized to dispense precise and minute amounts of liquid, such as droplets of liquid, into individual wells of a multiple-well tray, such as in pharmaceutical testing, for example. Precise numbers of drops should be dispensed into the individual wells in order to ensure accurate test results. There is a need, therefore, to detect the number of drops dispensed from a liquid dispensing device. Moreover, there is a need for detecting the presence of drops from a liquid dispensing device to determine if the orifices of the device are functioning.